Torque Plate Thickness

[Fireman450]

Guys
Been doing some searching and found part of the answer i'm looking for. What i need to know is if i made a torque plate for a 12v out of aluminum, what would be the best material and thickness? I saw where several people have made one from 2" steel so would say 3" 6061 be ok?

Thanks
Lynn

 

[SuperSonic]

I would suggest to make it the same thickness as the head since you need to torque it down with the same fasteners.

 

[renopker]

You will need spacers,the long bolts are 180mm long (12v). The alum. is going to 3X the price of steel.

 

[nwpadmax]

Just from an engineering standpoint, aluminum has 1/3 the stiffness of steel, so you have to make up for it with height, like you've suggested.

At about 3.5" thick, the aluminum plate would be roughly equal in stiffness to a 2" thick steel plate.

2" thick steel seems like a bit of overkill, but if that's the standard, then go with it.